Cummer Resources

The Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens is committed to engage and inspire through the arts, gardens and education. A permanent collection of nearly 5,000 works of art on a riverfront campus offers more than 95,000 annual visitors a truly unique experience on the First Coast. Nationally recognized education programs serve adults and children of all abilities.

War stories have often been told through song, dance, writing, and especially the visual arts. When stepping through Heroes & Battlefields: World War I Prints by James McBey, one is sure to feel the empathy McBey had for his fellow soldiers during his time in the British army, when he was drawing sketches of the devastated streets and harsh realities of World War I.

The McBey prints on view highlight the distinct ugliness of war, as can be seen in Unknown Frenchmen and The Carpenter of Hesdin. These two works are seemingly connected, with The Carpender of Hesdin portraying a man making wooden crosses to honor the dead, which then hauntingly define the landscape in Unknown Frenchmen, with soldiers resting in the abandoned trenches.

With this exhibition, the Museum commemorates the 100th anniversary of America’s entering World War I, and has invited G. Kurt Piehler, author of several U.S. Military History books to speak on this topic. He is also Director of the Institute on World War II and the Human Experience, as well as Associate Professor of History at Florida State University. He will be speaking on Tuesday, January 17 at 7 p.m. about the unshakable relationship between war and art.

For further information or to register, please call 904.899.6038, or register now.